23 Things About Adam Lashinsky

Adam Lashinsky is a writer with bionic tendencies. He covers Silicon Valley and Wall Street for Fortune, and is the author of the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller “Inside Apple: How America’s Most Admired — and Secretive — Company Really Works.” He’s also co-chair of Fortune Brainstorm Tech, which runs through today in Aspen, Colo. — and at which he moderated a fiery debate between Peter Thiel and Eric Schmidt on Monday night. Below, he answers 23 of our 25 questions, thereby proving that he’s a good sport as well as a family man.

What was your favorite TV show as a kid?
“Six Million Dollar Man.”

What qualities do you like in a person?
Intelligence.

What qualities do you dislike?
Dishonesty.

Name one thing you will regret never having done (if you never do it).
Taking a multiweek bike trip.

What’s the single most important issue in the world today?
Hunger.

Do you still buy CDs or rent DVDs?
I still rent DVDs from Netflix.

What would you be doing if you were not in your current job?
I thought about being a history professor and would still entertain that, but not at the expense of what I’m doing now.

What is your greatest achievement to date?
Helping to raise Leah Rachel Lashinsky.

iPhone, Android or BlackBerry?
iPhone.

What site/app do you check first when you wake up?
I read three newspapers when I first wake up, before checking email or looking at anything else electronic.

What was your first computer?
An IBM laptop I bought to take to Japan in 1994.

What was your biggest mistake?
Not moving to New York in my 20s or 30s.

Do you have a dog or cat or other pet?
No.

What’s your favorite mode of transportation?
Walking.

What was the last book you read?
“The Cat’s Table” by Michael Ondaatje.

If you could have any superpower, what would you choose?
Instantaneous travel. I’d like to zap to New York in seconds and be home for dinner.

Name your favorite guilty pleasure.
Watching television.

What was your biggest most recent purchase?
A “new” iPad for my wife.

Whom do you idolize?
Writers like Calvin Trillin and Robert Caro.

What do you drive/ride?
I drive a 2001 Nissan Pathfinder.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I’d like to find time to read more books and watch more movies.

Who was your biggest influence growing up?
My mother.

Describe an ideal day.
Up around 6 am to drink coffee and read the papers by myself. Breakfast with my wife and daughter. Several hours of work, a vigorous workout, lunch and dinner with my daughter. Seeing a really good play or movie at night.

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